Vice of Wills - Nepal

Nepal, In The Vice Of Wills (2001-2008)

I started photographing in Nepal in 2001. At the time the little kingdom was torn apart by a civil war between royal troops and the Maoist guerrilla. After spending days up in the mountains with the Maoist guerilla in May 2001, I returned to Katmandu 2 days only before the anachronical royal parricide: the prince Dipendra had shot dead 8 members of his family, including the beloved King Birendra.

The coronation of his uncle, King Gyanendra early June 2001 became synonymous of darker years for the country. In 2006, he sacked the parliament: again, Nepal became an absolute monarchy. People went down the streets to protest, for what was called the Jana Andolan-II, the democratic uprising. Dozens were killed before the 18th of May act when the Parliament unanimously voted to strip the King of many of his powers. Maoists entered legality after a ten-year civil war that claims more than thirteen thousands deaths.

A mere eighteen months after their organization was legalized, the CPN-Maoists achieved a broad unexpected electoral victory, winning more than a third of the Constituent Assembly seats. Prachanda the fierce Maoist leader, became Prime Minister in 2008.